'Spirit of Giving' connects students with cause

3rd annual gathering takes place in Grosse Pointe

The Green Pointe school district is planning its 'Spirit of Giving' event to connect students to a cause and invite others to take part.

On Tuesday, February 5, from 6 to 8 p.m., the gymnasium at North High School, 707 Vernier, Grosse Pointe Woods, 100 different non-profit organizations will tell families about their own mission and how they can get involved. As representatives from everything from Red Cross to animal rescues share their own stories, hand-on opportunities will fill the gym with chances to take immediate action, organizers said.

The event is inspired by the idea that helping students raise their eyes to look beyond themselves is a concrete way to combat violence with a sense of belonging. By building that connection to community, we can each make a difference, organizers said.

“Surround them with opportunity,” said Alicia Carlisle, event organizer and director of the Grosse Pointe school district’s service organization. “Any community can do this; we want to show them how."

Elementary students nominated for Acts of Kindness the week before will lead the lines of people packaging 10,000 meals for Kids Against Hunger. The nutritionally sound-meals only require boiling water to make. They're distributed locally, at national emergency sites, and across the globe.

Others will be tying colorful, fleece blankets to provide comfort to adult and pediatric patients at the local Beaumont Hospital, one of many event sponsors with the public school system, CARE of Southeastern Michigan, and the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber recruited local restaurants to serve Soup for the Soul. Any donations collected will go toward a community service opportunity near and dear to that restaurant owner’s heart, organizers said.

The district said commitment to service is part of what binds its community, and they want to share it with a larger audience.

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